What It Does

Some years ago, G.E. released a line of Christmas lights under the the "Color Effects" name. Each bulb could be a different color using a wireless remote with preset animations. In 2015, G.E. changed the names of these lights to "iTwinkle" which has nothing to do with the name of this website. The iTwinkle lights were bluetooth enabled, allowing a smartphone app to change the present animations. In 2016, G.E. stopped producing the iTwinkle line and reverted back to the "Color Effects" lights.

It is possible to hack G.E. Color Effects lights to work with xLights! The trick is removing the control box / power supply at the base of each string, then connecting the string to a custom controller. While there are commercial controllers available that allow GECE lights to work with xLights, it is possible to use a low-cost Arduino to control the GECE strings. Each Arduino can drive up to eight strings of 50-bulb GECE lights. In my particular configuration, I use two Arduinos to control 16 strings.